Baby Names Inspired by the Desert

Give Your Creation (Real or Imagined) A Desert Name To Make Them Stand Out

Coming up with a unique name is quite the rage these days, so using the desert as inspiration, I've made a list of names that may be a little different than the ones normally used. Basically, anything related to the desert was fair game, whether it be the names of the deserts themselves, desert towns, language translations, plants / animals found in the desert or feelings the open sands may evoke. I must admit that it was a little harder than I expected, as not everything inspired by the desert make cool baby names. I've even put the meanings or origins behind the names on some of those listed below, but felt that doing this for all of them would just dilute the purity of the article.

If you're someone who has always been fascinated by the shifting sands or rocky outcrops of the hotter regions of our planet, this may be the perfect names list for you. My plan is to keep adding to it on a regular basis, so check back every once in a while for new ideas. I hope you enjoy the list and find it a useful starting place on finding that perfect first name for your child or for that character your trying to come up with. Thank you for taking a look. Enjoy.

A Quick Word About Boy And Girl Names

At one point I thought about making separate name lists - one for girls and one for boys. After seeing how difficult it was to come up with good names, I decided to group them into one list. So, in short, you're going to find both boy and girl inspired desert names below.

A List of Unique Names Associated With The Desert

Abalos (sand dune on Mars)

Aberdeen

Acacia

Acuna

Adara

Addax

Adder

Agave

Ahote (Hopi for “restless one”.)

Alexander

Amaterasu (Japanese goddess of the sun.)

Anasazi (A Navajo word which means "enemy ancestors".)

Ant

Apache

Aranda (My Great Aunt was given this beautiful name.)

Argus

Ari (Hebrew for “lion”.)

Arid (Someone with a dry sense of humor would be very ironic.)

Aridisol (arid soil)

Ariella

Arizona (A fitting, albeit, obvious name.)

Armadillo

Ar Ramlah (the sand)

Artesia

Ashdod

Asia

Aster (After the Mojave Aster plant.) (Also Greek for "star".)

Atacama (a desert in South America)

Audun (desolate)

Azahara

Badger

Baja (A great desert themed baby name.)

Barren (A name that most mothers wouldn't want to use.)

Barstow

Bast (Egyptian goddess associated with protection and cats. She was also the daughter of Ra the sun god.)

Beetle

Bernd

Bilby

Bishop

Bisbee

Blane

Blaze

Bloom (Deserts come alive with color every time it rains.)

Bosa (Derived from Old English meaning "clearing or glade".)

Brick (You can't make these pillars of construction without sand.)

Bruneau

Burn

A Celebration Of All Things "Desert"

Using the desert as inspiration for a good name may seem a little ironic because a name is seen as a permanent thing, whereas most deserts are always changing. Water (when it comes) and wind erode the ground and rock. In alluvial (or sand) deserts they are always in constant motion. Also don't forget the fact that all deserts are not hot. Look close enough at the most barren desert and you will discover life. Life always seems to be permanent. Like a name.

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Cactus (The trees of the desert.)

Cadiz

Calico

Calvin

Camel (A ship that needs no water.)

Cera

Cerro

Chad

Chaparral

Chaya (Hebrew for “life”.)

Chia

Chill

Cholla

Christmas (cactus)

Claret

Clay

Cleopatra (perfect desert name for a girl)

Cliff

Cobra

Coral

Cougar

Coulter

Creo (after Creosote Bush)

Crimson (after the Crimson Hedgehog Cactus)

Daisy

Darius

Darwin (The strongest survives.)

Datura (A summer perennial of the desert.)

Desert (A bit on the spot, but still a good name.)

Desolation

Dez

Dingo

Dryscoll

Dubai

Dune (A great name with a Sci-Fi feel.)

Dustin

Dusty

Dykuma (Lithuanian for desert)

Dyssodia (desert plant)

Edan (Celtic for fire.)

Egypt

Eolian (wind activity)

Ephedra

Ezra (An old Hebrew word that means "help".)

Fern

Forge

Fox

Fraser

Fulani

Gibson

Gila (After a venomous lizard native to the southwestern U.S. Also a river running through New Mexico and Arizona.)

Glaze

Gobi (This was my great Uncle's name.)

Grannus (Celtic god of fire and the sun.)

Griffon

Gundi

Hadley

Hammada (rocky desert)

Hassuna

Hesperia (An ancient Greek name of Italy that means 'land of the setting sun'.)

Hopper (Named after the locusts that populate this arid world.)

Hotness (Although, not all deserts are hot.)

Not All Deserts Are Hot

A lot of people only associate deserts with heat, which is incorrect. The global environments are defined by their lack of rainfall (how dry they are). As a result, many different regions all over the world are classified as deserts. Some are cold, some are hot, all are harsh and all have life there. I bet you never thought that you could freeze to death in a desert, but you can.

Indio

Indus

Israel

Ivy

Jack

Jalal (great; majestic)

Janusia

Javelina

Javier (bright)

Jerome

Johona (Navajo name meaning Sunny)

Jericho

Jordan

Joshua

Juniper

Kalahari

Kara

Karroo

Kelso

Kesha

Kestrel

Khufu (great Egyptian Pharaoh)

Kiowa

Kirbus

Kit

I have always loved the desert. One sits down on a desert sand dune; sees nothing; hears nothing; yet through the silence something throbs, and gleams...

— Antoine de Saint-Exupery, The Little Prince

Character Circumstances or Personality Quirks That Go With Desert Inspired Names

A person nearly dies from exposure only to be save by a nomadic desert tribe. He or she is reborn and given a new name by the tribe.

Someone who raised by desert people only to have them slaughtered one day by a group of barbarians. He vows revenge in the name of his or her people.

A character or characters who can manipulate the desert sands. As such they never leave their place of power and are practically unbeatable on their own turf. A large oil discovery makes things even more interesting as many powerful nations now want their lands.

A person with a giant scorpion tattoo on their back is found wandering the Nevada desert and is brought to a casino to recover. They recover, win a bunch of money and buy the very casino that they found refuge in.

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Kuuma (Finnish for hot)

Lawrence (a solid desert name for a boy)

Leona

Lily

Lithop (living stones)

Maddox

Maracanda (modern day Samarkand)

Marigold

Mariposa

Marrram (a desert grass)

Mathias

Menodora

Mesa

Mescal

Mex or Mexico

Mirage

Molopo (river running through Klahari desert)

Monte

Namib

Nectar

Neema (born in prosperity)

Nessa

Nevada

Nolina

Nomad

Oasis

Odora

Olive

Ordos (a desert in China)

Oryx (a gazelle that lives in some deserts)

Owami

Papago (desert people)

Phacelia

Phaedra (bright)

Wonderful Things Can Be Found In The Sands - Stark reminders of frightening creatures that once roamed the earth.

Many people don't realize that at one time the deserts used to be lush, green areas of land with rivers and lakes. Some of them were were even centers of civilization or large communities. As today, our ancestors had to share the land with a variety of animals, and if you go back far enough- reptiles. Is it any wonder that if you dig deep enough beneath the desert sands that odds are good that you'll find something quite interesting and some of those interesting items can be quite large. All you have to do is tolerate the heat - and itchy sand.

Phlox

Phoenix

Poppy

Primrose

Puma

Pyla (largest sand dune in Europe)

Rain

Ramadi

Ramses

Red (there are a few desert sands that are deep red in color)

Reno

Rhino

Rock

Rocky (the majority of desert lands are rock)

Roo

Ryn

Sadie

Sadzi (sunny; happy)

Sage (After Desert Sage, which is a very common plant in a lot of deserts.)

Vegas (A friend named their child this one because she was born there.)

Victoria

Warren

Wash

Willow

Yucca

Yuma

Zenobia

Zinnia

Zuni

How Can Something So Beautiful Be So Deadly? - The Namibian Desert In Southern Africa

All you have to do to realize there is beauty in everything is to look at a desert. At first glance most of these areas seem to be a barren, uninhabitable landscape that you wouldn't want to be stranded in. Spend a little time in one and you will completely change your mind. Before doing this, however, it is wise to study the place where your going and be prepared, for this beautiful entity can torture or even kill those who aren't ready for it.

Coming up with creative names for a child, fictional character or for even a pet is not as easy as it would seem . I hope this article has helped you do that in some way. Thanks for paying it a visit.